Known pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes include various dyes obtained by the coupling reaction of 1H-pyrazolo[1,5-a]benzimidazoles disclosed, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 3,061,432, 1H-pyrazolo[1,5-c]-1,2,4-triazoles disclosed, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 3,725,067, 1H-imidazo[1,2-b]pyrazoles disclosed, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,500,630, 1H-pyrazolo[1,5-b]-1,2,4-triazoles disclosed, e.g., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,540,654, 1H-pyrazolo[1,5-d]tetrazoles disclosed, e.g., in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 33552/85 (the term "OPI" as used herein means an "unexamined published patent application"), or 1H-pyrazolo[1,5-b]pyrazoles disclosed, e.g., in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 43659/85 with the oxidation product of an aromatic primary amine color developing agent for photography in the existence of an alkali.
It is disclosed in the above described patents and Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 186567/85 that pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes can be utilized as, in particular, image-forming magenta dyes for silver halide color photographic materials by utilizing the above-described coupling reaction.
While pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes which are utilized as magenta dyes for conventional silver halide color photographic materials have, in addition to main absorptions, harmful side absorptions at the shorter wavelength side of the main absorptions, the above-described pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes have less side absorptions and hence give clearer hue as compared to the pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes.
Also, some pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes, e.g., pyrazolo[5,1-c]-1,2,4-triazoleazomethine dyes disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,725,067, pyrazolo[1,5-b]-1,2,4-triazoloazoleazomethine dyes disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,540,654, and pyrazolo[1,5-d]-tetrazoleazomethine dyes disclosed in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 33552/85 give sharp visible absorption spectra as compared to conventional pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes, and hence give clearer hue as well as lower side absorption described above.
However, with recent requirements for further improving the image quality of silver halide color photographic materials, dyes which can give sharper absorption spectra and have clearer hue than the above-described pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes have been desired.
Also, the molecular extinction coefficient of the pyrazoloazoleazomethine dyes described above is at most 6 .times.10.sup.4 l.mol.sup.-1.cm.sup.-1, and hence dyes having a higher molecular extinction coefficient have been desired.
Dyes having a higher molecular extinction coefficient can give a desired optical density with a less amount thereof, and hence when these dyes are utilized as, for example, dyes for forming color images of silver halide color photographic material, the thickness of emulsion layer(s) of the color photographic material can be greatly reduced, to thus reduce the cost for the silver halide in such photographic materials, and furthermore, such silver halide photographic materials provide images having improved sharpness.